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Republic of the Kingdom of Ya'akova
Formally established March 1, 2019, the Republic of the Kingdom of Ya'akova is a Micronation that was established by its ruler, Jacob of Ya'akova, to ensure Liberty, Equity, and Truth to those in its borders. History The Old Kingdom of Ya'akova The Republic was originally started when the king was but a lad living in the State of Nevada, and was originally called the Provinces of Ranaia, after the apple of his eye. Soon after, however, this nation fell. It was reestablished as the Kingdom of Jacobia. After several months, however, knowing that the name seemed to isolate a great number from partaking in its liberties, the nation in referrendum decided upon the name of Ya'akova, being similar in name, but being named in the language of ancient days "Great Ruler" or "Great Guide". For many years the kingdom prospered, but had not land to govern. Its borders were limited only to a digital frontier. This all changed when the king came into posession of a parcel of land in the State of Utah, in which he purchased the land and claimed sovereignty right. It was on this day that the king renewed the dream of a physical Ya'akova. With the passing of time, however, the nation fell dead of power, and many began to abandon the project. The king saw the only thing to do was to himself, being the only one remaining, abandon the nation. Thus it seemed like the nation would never again be established, and thus this time came to be known as the Great Collapse. However, the king went on a mission to serve the Lord in the Republic of Peru, and returned a different man, filled with optimism and hope for a new nation, improved upon that what was left behind. A New Kingdom The king then gathered together a Council to determine what should be done, and in a landslide victory, those of the Council determined that Ya'akova should be reinstated. However, they determined that it should no longer be simply a kingdom with monarchial powers, but rather an experiment in democratic rule. Not simply wanting to give up their monarchial legacy nor simply remain in the same state where the kingdom was when it collapsed, the king proposed a new form of government. It would take the best of both forms of government and combine them into a new government. And thus the Council, acknowledging the legacy of the past and future of the nation, determined that the nation should be named "The Republic of the Kingdom of Ya'akova." Modern Day Ya'akova Today, Ya'akova is still in its organizing phase, creating new departments, inviting people to join the nation. No construction or infastructure has been created as of yet, but an Expedition has been proposed and is being organized to bring order to the land. Almost every day the king is meeting with his advisers and heads of government to determine what are the best courses of action to be taken in the organization of the government. Location Ya'akova is located in Utah, USA. It is located on the outskirts of the City of Delta and is the property of the king. It is divided into several provinces, which constitute the Legislative House of Ya'akova. Its residents are free to work and live wherever they so desire within its borders. Government The Government of Ya'akova is a Monarchial Democratic Republic. It is headed by the King, Jacob of Ya'akova, who holds absolute power but is required by law to only exercise it when necessary and for the betterment of the Nation and its Liberty. The government is composed of Four Houses or Branches. *The Royal House - This is the House of Hewit, where the king holds all control. This branch is more of an overseer of government branch than a true organization with power. The current head of this branch is Jacob of Ya'akova, who doubles as Head of State. *The Executive House - Headed by the elected Regent of Ya'akova, this is the Administrative Branch of Government. Thus far there is no one who occupies the office of Regent to execute law into action, so King Jacob acts as the head of this branch for the interim. There are, however, a few administrative departments that have been established for the nation: **Department of Domestic Affairs **Department of Foreign Affairs **Department of the Military **Department of Education and Science **Department of Health and Temporal Welfare **Department of Ecclesiastical Relations *The Judicial House - The Legal Arm of Government, it is composed by the Supreme Council of Justices, appointed by the regent, to ensure that Laws are enforced and that the Constitution is upheld. *The Legislative House - This is the Branch of Government that creates law and administers the day-to-day affairs of government. This House is composed of two chambers: **The Senatorial Chamber, with two senators elected per province **The Council of the People, with one councilor elected per every ten citizens in a province with a base of one per province. :: The relationship between these two chambers is similar to that of the United States House of Representatives and Senate. Provinces The Republic is sub-divided into a Union of Provinces, each of which has a say in the Legislative House. The Provinces have their own local governments that determine law and further strive to progress Liberty in the nation. Culture The Republic is very socially conservative, valuing integrity, liberty and hard work over the mundane. The Ya'akovans are very religious, the king having served as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. They are very religious in their observances and quick to help a fellow in need. They are also very animated people. A cultural tradition is a weekly city Baile Latino (Latin Dance) of either Bachata or Cumbia or Salsa. They also tend to go on outings either as families or as a group of friends. A cultural dish shared with a variety of Latin American countries is ceviche. Holidays There are not many national holidays observed in Ya'akova. Generally the Ya'akovim do not take days off except for Sundays, but they do have a few days they use to celebrate culturally-significant occurrences. * January 1 - New Cycle Day (New Year's) * February 14 - Day of Love and Friendship * February 28 - Constitution Day * March 1 - Founding Day * March 20 - Union of the Shield Day (Flag Day) * April 6 - Day of Christ/Ya'akovim Easter * June 31 - Weasel Stomping Day * August 14 - National Family Day * October 31 - Day of the Dead * November 1 - Thanksgiving Day * December 25 - Christmas Day The Flag The Flag of Ya'akova has a very interesting history and symbolism. The original flag (as seen to the right) was a simple flag, reminiscent of Peruvian, American, and Mormon symbolism. The Laurel Wreath symbolized Liberty and Justice, a promise to the Ya'akovim people as written in the Constitution. The Blue Star symbolized a United State of the people. on the star the motto "There is Liberty in Sacrifice" is seen, reminding Ya'akovim that liberty for nation, posterity, and self are all gained at the cost of sacrifice. The Beehive represents Industry, and furthers the motif of Sacrifice and Unity. On March 20th, 2019, a new banner was created, with the New National Shield in the center. While the National Motto is no longer seen, the three Symbols are seen as well as six smaller golden stars, symbolizing the 6 outlying provinces of Ya'akova. The creation of this banner instituted the national Flag Day. Religion There is no state mandated religion in the Republic, but the commonly accepted religion is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The king is of this religion, and publicly advocates it, but also is tolerant and accepting of the beliefs of others as Freedom of Religion and Conscience is written in the constitution. Aboriginal Ya'akovim Religious Belief Although there was no formal religion before the founding of the nation, ancient tribal belief was the dominant spiritual belief in the region. The ancient inhabitants had many myths and legends that guided ancient life and ethics. One of the ancient beliefs was of the creation. The myth goes that One Light came into existence and illuminated the endless void. This Light became the center of all truth and good, and in time became a being to rule the void.. The Light was soon divided into four other, lesser Lights. Three of these were those who came down to the mortal plane and created the world. The Blue Light of Goberlis created the Law of the Physical Universe. It was this Light that gave birth to the idea of creation. The Red Light of Realidus using the physical law created the earth and its terrain, as well as created the sky and seas. The Green Light of Verdis created the beings that would uphold the physical and moral law, and thus ending the creation. The Three Lights, seeing their work done, left the world. Where they left the physical plane was left a relic containing the fullness of Law, Power, and Life. The Fourth Light, however, saw that the Three had only made a machine and that there was no true life. So, the light took on the form of a man and descended to the world and gave its inhabitants free will to do good or evil and gave them their Animated Spirits. When the Fourth saw that they began to abuse their free will, the Fourth created, based in connection with the works of the Three, the Higher Law of the Spirit, or the Moral Law. Creation was taught this, and the Fourth Light revealed the Heavens and Heavenly Lights to the Living, for now there were many, so to guide the inhabitants to live a higher life. The Fourth Light then took the Relic left by the first three and added an Inhibitor so that only the truly virtuous could use its power over creation. The Creation and Organization completed, the Fourth returned to the Heavens and promised that it would return to judge the good from the evil and take the good to the Heavens so their Animated Spirits could become Light as well. There were only three moral laws in the culture: Do not Lie, Do not Hurt, and Do not be Lazy, collectively known as the Three Enlightened Commandments. All of these if broken were punishable by death or banishment. Under rare circumstances, however, a sinner was able to make amends for their sin in an eye-for-an-eye fashion. Under these circumstances, if a person lied they would have to walk naked around the village three times and then stand tied to a pole, still naked, for the rest of the day. If a person hurt or stole, they were to be hurt in the same way or they were to surrender something of equal value of what they stole. If they were caught doing nothing, they were to walk on hot coals and then sentenced to forced labor for the rest of their lives. Modern Religious Observance While the native traditions are not publicly held to be religious belief, certain legal customs stem from the three Enlightened Commandments of the old Ya'akovim. However, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, while not a state-mandated religion, is the generally accepted religion of the Republic of the Kingdom of Ya'akova. The Church is known as the Restored Church of Jesus Christ, as God called a prophet to restore the Church that Jesus Christ had organized during His mortal ministry, but had since been lost with the death of the apostles and the ending of their line of priesthood authority. Joseph Smith, the prophet, received the visitation of God the Father and Jesus Christ, and in time received the Priesthood Authority of the Apostles to restore the Church again on the Earth. The greatest evidence of this is the Book of Mormon, which invites all to read it, ponder if it is the Word of God, and pray to know that it is true. Those who do so with an open heart and with faith in Christ will receive a testimony of the truthfulness and certainty of it by the Power of the Holy Ghost. Among these things, the Church teaches some of the following as its core principles and doctrines: * The Reality and Divinity of God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost * Through obedience to God and His Commandments, all may be saved by the grace of the Atonement of Jesus Christ * Families, consisting of a Father and a Mother and Children, are central to the plan of God and the happiness and well-being of His Children * The Sanctity of Life, both born and unborn, and caring for our bodies * The Importance of reading the Bible, Book of Mormon, and other volumes of sacred scripture * The Necessity of Baptism and other Saving Ordinances under the authority of the Holy Priesthood * The Importance of Service to both God and Mankind * The Duty to share the Gospel and minister to the needs of those around us * The Plan of God and the Purpose of Life, and us being prepared to us returning to live with God and receiving of all His blessings that he can bestow on us The Church is the center of every believer's life, and while the believers acknowledge the division between church and state, they believe that the morality one learns from religion should be applied to all aspects of life. Because of this, there are several laws that stem from such religious morality, such as: * Prohibition of Illicit Drug, Tobacco, and Alcohol use * Sundays being a national Day of Rest, excepting public services such as Fire, Police, and Medical Services * A Civic Duty to serve community and the poor * Marital Unions are only acknowledged by government if performed by an ecclesiastical leader in a religion. * Illegality of Persecution and Discrimination on the basis of Religion or lack thereof Economy The Economy of the Republic is largely based on construction and property rights. The national currency is the Credit ©. Its value is determined by the average of the USD and the Peruvian Sol. As of 5 April 2019, the credit is worth US $0.65. Foreign Relations Ya'akova is based in Utah, USA, but has yet to have a formal relationship with the US or State of Utah Government. Recognition Ya'akova is recognized by the following states: * The Republic of Molossia Recognized States The Nations which the Republic recognizes are: * The United States of America * All other United Nations Members * Taiwan * Kosovo * Republic of Molossia * Liberland * The Most Serene Republic of Egan * Principality of Greater Princia * Isles of Stonne * Grand Duchy of Flario * Kingdom of Apachiland * Nottingham Empire * Mountania Informal Relations The Nations with which the Republic has informal friendly relations with are: * Republic of Molossia * The Most Serene Republic of Egan Formal Relations The Republic, over the course of the last few weeks, has begun to establish foreign relations with other nations outside of the international organizations of which it is a part of. As time progresses and relations open, the list shall be updated on this page. International Organizations The Nations with which the Republic is in alliance with, outside of an international treaty, are: * Mountania On March 19th 2019, Ya'akova joined the Alliance of Micronational Crowns in order to create a bond and relationship with the intermicronational community, and thus it maintains an alliance with: * Isles of Stone * Principality of Greater Princia * Grand Duchy of Flario * Kingdom of Apachiland * Nottingham Empire On March 27th 2019, Ya'akova joined the Micronation Treaty Organization (MTO). On March 27th 2019, Ya'akova was the Founding Member of The Council of Micronations, and has since had its councilor serving as the Chairman Councilor. The Republic had been invited to be member in the United Micronations, but for reasons unknown has had its invitation revoked and has not since applied for membership. Therefore it is no longer a part of any Micro-international organization at this time. Citizenship Having only been established in March of 2019, there are not many citizens of the Republic. However, all who are interested may follow this link to the Application for Citizenship. Website After a few weeks in development, the Republic has released a website summarizing the different aspects of the kingdom and is now up an running after a few bugs. All are invited to see and contact the government.